Carnivals and circuses have fascinated me since I was young. Even today, I still am taken in by magical atmosphere — the way time stops and visitors are transported into an almost otherworldly realm. This wonderment is something I thought Neil Jordan captured immensely well in his latest novel, Carnivalesque. The setting held a great deal of intrigue and carried a mysterious air. This was especially brought out throughout the eyes of the main character, Andrew, who was a young boy.

After Why?, I’m certain the most popular question is, What if? Second-guessing our choices is human nature. Maybe in Another Life taps precisely on this. What if Hannah chooses to do one thing? What is she goes with the alternative instead? Maybe in Another Life presents two options and how they could possibly turn out differently. These alternative outcomes are told though concurrent storylines.

Life choices, second chances and changing the past are major themes in Seconds. That’s why I think it’s a graphic novel that appeals to a wide audience, even if the medium isn’t something one usually reads. It’s natural to wish things had gone differently, lamenting that everything could’ve turned out better, dwelling on the perpetual if only…

Going into books blind, particularly books like Vicious, can be infinitely thrilling. You enter unexplored land and everything is new. You don’t follow the tracks paved by expectations built upon the reading experiences of others. The cover states that it’s “a twisted tale of ambition, desire and superpowers”. It’s very correct in that description. That’s your starting point if you’re up for a thrill. If that’s you, then go on, pick up the book, read it and return to my review later to share your excitement. Now, if you’d rather know what you’re getting yourself into, read on.

Equatorial Sunshine offers more than just another collection of poems — it also contains snippets of musings. These musings are written in prose poetry form. This means they are laid out in prose but in a lyrical manner befitting a collection of poems. It’s evident that Su Ann put a lot of herself into Equatorial Sunshine. That’s why her poems surely are relatable to anyone in their twenties.